Castoriadis’s encounter with autopoiesis was a decisive factor for his philosophical trajectory. Its influence can be seen on four interconnected levels of his thought: his reconsideration of Greek sources for his later interpretation of trans-regional being as self-creating; his rethinking of objective knowledge; his ventures into philosophical cosmology; and his re-evaluation of the living being, especially in light of his dialogue with Varela. In brief, Castoriadis’s engagement with autopoiesis was significant for his shift towards an ontology of radical physis. His (...) shift to radical physis does not point so much to a rejection of the project of autonomy, however, as, paradoxically, its simultaneous radicalization and relativization. (shrink)

This article explores the notions of indeterminacy and creation in Castoriadis’ work. The notions of indeterminacy and creation are initially associated with Castoriadis’ conception of Being as Chaos contradicted with what Castoriadis calls “ensemblistic-identitary logic”. The conception of Being as Chaos is then linked with the notion of otherness analyzed as creation ex nihilo. In particular, creation ex nihilo is analyzed in the context of Castoriadis division of Being’s multiplicity into difference and otherness. I will argue that Being’s multiplicity as (...) difference refers to the “ensemblistic-identitary logic” while otherness comes up with a novel form of Being identified as ex nihilo creation. Finally, otherness is approached through Castoriadis’ conception of time whereby otherness and, consequently, time is further associated with Castoriadis’ notion of imaginary as the latter deploys in the social-historical field of mankind through the imaginary significations of society. (shrink)

Volume 20, Issue 1, February 2019, Page 40-53.

One of the most contentious of Castoriadis' ideas is his concept of creatio ex nihilo (creation from nothing). This article elucidates and evaluates this concept of creation, contrasting Castoriadis' approach with its classical antithesis in the philosophy of Parmenides, who famously concluded that the universe muct be unchanging since nothing can come to be or cease to be.